On Wednesday, August 26, at 14:00, a new disaster management center will be officially inaugurated at 4 Ziemeru Street, Alūksne. The center will bring together emergency services and internal affairs institutions under one roof. The new facility represents a significant investment in strengthening the security and response capabilities of Latvia’s eastern border region. It was built with support from the European Union Recovery and Resilience Facility.
The disaster management center will house the State Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS), the State Police, the State Border Guard, the Information Centre of the Ministry of the Interior, the Provision State Agency (PSA), and the State Emergency Medical Service. The total area of the building is 3,104 square meters.
The establishment of the disaster management center in Alūksne carries special importance given its location in Latvia’s eastern border region. Modern infrastructure and co-locating multiple emergency response services create the prerequisites for closer daily cooperation, faster information exchange, and more coordinated action during routine incidents as well as larger threats and crises. The overall objective of the disaster management centers is to improve cooperation, coordination, and response capacity among emergency services.
At the same time, the center provides modern working conditions tailored to the specific operational needs of the services. As such, the new center is not merely a new building—it is a long-term investment in the security of the Latvian state and public.
Construction of the disaster management center in Alūksne began on September 11, 2024, and the Provision State Agency took over management of the building on June 11 this year. The agency commissioned the project, while construction was carried out by the general partnership "P un S BŪVNIECĪBA". The total cost of the project was €8,340,000, of which €6,760,000 was funded by the EU Recovery and Resilience Facility and €1,580,000 by the state budget.
The Alūksne Disaster Management Center is one of nine disaster management centers in Latvia constructed with support from the EU Recovery and Resilience Facility. The other centers are located in Alsunga, Daugavpils, Madona, Līvāni, Salacgrīva, Liepāja, Talsi, and Viļāni. Funding from the Recovery and Resilience Facility for these nine centers amounts to €36,630,000, bringing the total cost—including €7,692,300 in state co-financing—to €44,322,300. The target set under the Recovery and Resilience Facility investment is the establishment of nine nearly zero-energy disaster management centers.
Development of the disaster management center network in Latvia is ongoing, with an additional eleven centers being built with co-financing from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) in Tukums, Riga (Bolderāja), Kuldīga, Preiļi, Sigulda, Aizkraukle, Limbaži, Jūrmala (Kauguri), Dobele, Ludza, and Saldus.
Media representatives are invited to attend the official opening ceremony of the Alūksne Disaster Management Center on August 26 at 14:00 at 4 Ziemeru Street, Alūksne. Media members wishing to attend are asked to register by contacting prese@vugd.gov.lv.
